“We’re notably enthusiastic about, not simply the chance right here in Abu Dhabi, however the Gulf area usually,” Silver informed reporters within the capital forward of Friday’s tip-off. “Now we have a protracted historical past on this market, video games have been televised for roughly 35 years.
“The sport might be 100-years outdated right here within the Center East… Right this moment, we’re the second-most-popular sport after soccer and the fastest-growing sport on the earth, when it comes to basketball.
“One of many issues particularly we’re enthusiastic about is the dramatic enhance we’re seeing in women and younger girls taking part in. I used to be on the Abu Dhabi Campus of NYU [New York University], the place we have now a program known as ‘Her Time To Play’.
“We had roughly 130 women, 11-14 years outdated… There have been two elements to this system; there was about an hour spent in dialog with these gamers in regards to the values of the sport, life expertise, significance of laborious work and respect for the sport, dedication to your craft after which an hour on the court docket, when it comes to basketball expertise.
“We’ve had a chance over the past week right here with our on-the-ground basketball by means of Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA applications to attach with greater than 7,000 youngsters. That features 450 coaches, some based mostly right here, some who travelled right here for the basketball portion of this expertise.
“From our standpoint, it’s been very profitable up to now.”
Bonds between the NBA and Center East have gone from energy to energy. Along with NBA Abu Dhabi Video games, Jr. NBA/WNBA and NBA Basketball College applications have been established, whereas UAE airline Emirates have been named International Airline Companion of the NBA and Title Companion of Emirates NBA Cup.
NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum was satisfied that is simply the beginning.
He mentioned: “I believe the variety of partnerships that you just’re going to see right here within the area I believe will develop. Emirates is a accomplice of ours with the brand new NBA Cup, they’ve been terrific companions within the area.
“Now we have a partnership with the Qatar Basis to do grassroots applications, Jr. NBA applications in Qatar for girls and boys, too. BeIN has been a long-standing media accomplice of ours all through your complete Center East and North Africa.
“I believe the partnerships that we develop right here, native corporations Aldar, ADQ are additionally investing in basketball. I believe that may proceed to develop over the following 5 years as nicely.”
Development in taking part in and coaching alternatives was additionally a key theme for Commissioner Silver. He hoped to benefit from Abu Dhabi’s standing as “a sports activities and leisure hub for the entire area”, doubtlessly bringing an elite academy to the UAE.
He mentioned: “We’re targeted on some elite coaching right here. Abu Dhabi has grow to be a sports activities and leisure hub for the entire area, we see a chance doubtlessly with an elite academy right here to herald younger individuals from the area broadly described… and take a number of the greatest youth gamers and convey them right here to coach collectively, to develop to play on the highest ranges for his or her nationwide groups and doubtlessly in skilled competitors.”
It’s not simply the large footprint of NBA’s superstars that has been felt in Abu Dhabi. Participation in Jr. NBA/WNBA leagues has grown exponentially throughout the UAE, with Tatum taking specific satisfaction of their improvement.
He mentioned: “I believe the primary studying is that in case you make investments in the neighborhood, put money into giving youngsters the chance to play the sport of basketball, you will note an incredible affect.
“That’s a part of the partnership. After we first sat down with Abu Dhabi, it wasn’t simply in regards to the video games, it was in regards to the actions we’d create across the video games.
“They understood that it was an excellent factor to get extra youngsters energetic, taking part in the sport of basketball. That’s the reason we began off in that first 12 months creating Jr. NBA applications for girls and boys.
“Participation is up 60 per cent within the UAE, 120 Jr. NBA groups this 12 months up from 90 final 12 months. These are the issues for governments all over the world, Abu Dhabi is saying ‘that’s an excellent factor for us’.”